Born in 1923, Lim Tze Peng is largely a self-taught artist. In his oeuvre, ink paintings and calligraphic works feature prominently, although there is a small number of oils, watercolours and drawings. He created a unique style of ink painting using rich brush and tonal details, and this approach is often regarded as a manifestation of the Nanyang Style in the ink medium. Lim, a school principal until his retirement in the early 1980s, was awarded the Cultural Medallion by the Singapore government in 2003.Although Lim is best known as an exponent of Chinese ink painting, he is also skilled in oils, a medium he learned in the1950s. Towards the end of the 20th century, trees, one of Lim’s favourite subjects, begin to dominate the composition as the branches, trunks and roots become increasingly massive and entangled.
